Friday, November 18, 2011

Here are some comments about when and natural learning starts to really show, and what it looks like.

New in the middle of this page:http://sandradodd.com/deschoolingcomments
"... That has now changed and he has many interests—baking, voice-acting, chemistry, comedy writing, the Rennaisance (thanks, Merlin and the BBC!), and on and on. He had to find a peaceful home in himself before he could start to decorate it with knowledge."

Monday, November 14, 2011

Four articles (two by me, one by Pam Sorooshian and one by Deb Lewis) and ten "Just Add Light and Stir" posts are now linked on the French page.SandraDodd.com/french

Thanks to Catherine Goudouchaouri, Claire Rakotonimaro, and Edith Chabot, of the UK, France and Quebec, respectively, for these gifts of translation! Please pass the links on to anyone who might want more unschooling input in French.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Transcriptions of things published many years ago, but never on my site until now.

On the day I wrote the first part, Holly was two years old, nearly three. She's twenty years old now. The follow-up was written at the end of 1999 or beginning of 2000, because Holly was eight and Marty was ten. There's only a small window between their birthdays.

There are photos and links to other photos, too. Anyone who thinks of me as the mother of young adults can visit a time I had nap-taking children I could carry around on my hip.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

There were two tongue-fumbles, but I put notes at the bottom. The slide show doesn't advance on its own. You'll need to change it yourself. Good luck. :-) [No problem just running it back and forth randomly while you're listening, really.]

This photo is me with Emma Fuller. She was over at my house the other day for Holly's birthday, and said she hadn't seen me since London. This was taken the day before I spoke at the LiTTLe Conference. If they have another one, I'm definitely going back.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Something else new but not on my site is a new link to a review of this last summer's London conference: http://www.lttl.org.uk/ The fourth link is new to the site, and she especially liked Schuyler's presentation.

This note is here so that anyone who got an earlier e-mail and tries to follow it back won't be frustrated. :-)
Have a nice November!

Gratuitous photo is of Holly on her 20th birthday, two days ago, in the parking lot after a nice lunch with the rest of her family (minus Kirby) and most of the McNeill's (minus Helene and Sophie, whom we'd spoken with by Skype the day before).

Monday, October 31, 2011

Over the next many-months, I will be speaking and hanging out here:
The ALL Unschooling Symposium
Albuquerque
December 28-31, 2011http://sandradodd.com/all
It will be small, but is already international, with a family from Ontario, Canada, and one from Sussex, England.

Either before or after that, late Spring or June/July, The LiTTLe Conferencein London (if they have a 2012 conference) and so perhaps in Edinburgh, and probably, if the trip happens, I'll speak in Leiden, in the Netherlands.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Skepticism and the nature of unschooling
(skip this if you're in a light and fluffy mood)
I've added to the top of the page, and to the bottom.
The middle part was announced here in August, 2006.http://sandradodd.com/skepticism

When I first submitted these books to Lulu.com, Moving a Puddle had color pictures, but they advised after that to put photos in black and white. So The Big Book has b&w photos. Bummer in retrospect. At least in the iBook versions, anyway, Moving a Puddle has color images! :-)

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Schuyler Waynforth, about a forgotten anniversary, and contentment:http://sandradodd.com/spouses
(upper left)
Ben Lovejoy, four new pages to add to the one article I had. Three came from "Connections," and one Ben sent me in May, when I was in England, and it was lost in the shuffle until now!http://sandradodd.com/benlovejoy
is the directory page, and the newly-presented information is here:

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

The Connections ezine site will not be maintained by its owner, and I was told to grab what I wanted before it was gone. One month, my first book was featured as a resource, and I've saved that page, with its reviews, here:http://sandradodd.com/feedback/puddlebookreviews

Unschooler's Pipe Wrenchhttp://sandradodd.com/deblewis/humor
"We understand we don't always have a choice about what life brings us, but we always have a choice about how we face it. And we face it wearing big red clown noses."

Confessions of a Lawbreaker: "My son Dylan has been voting for years. According to the Twenty sixth Amendment he doesn't have the right to vote until he's eighteen years old, but we amended that amendment, at least in our own minds...."http://sandradodd.com/deblewis/confessions

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

These articles are both five years old, but have lived on a site that will be dissolving soon, so I've brought them and their photos and will be bringing some other articles by authors I've been collecting. Sometimes my pack-rat "collect the whole set" nature can benefit others.
How a Monster and a Dead Guy Named Howard Led a Boy to a World of Connections, by Deb Lewishttp://sandradodd.com/deblewis/monster

We sold all the sets we had at The Good Vibrations Conference, but received a new shipment today. The proceeds will go toward rental of meeting rooms for the ALL Unschooling Symposium in Albuquerque in December. The result of having the magnets on your fridge or filing cabinet might be that might be inspired or reminded to be patient and present. They might also make great gifts!!

A full set of five is $10 (including shipping); individual magazines, with shipping, are $3.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Principles, something new by Joyce up top, and links added at the bottom. http://sandradodd.com/principles
This page could be a new starting place for the site, with a week's worth of reading.
Perhaps too intense for beginners.
Definitely a time for "Read a little, try a little, wait a while, watch."

In light of another spate of arguments for diagnosing and labelling children's "shiny differences," Chris Sanders wrote about traits her daughter had that needed time, attention, and unschooling, rather than professional "help."http://sandradodd.com/words/without

Gail posted photos and words about a hike she and Broc took together. It's sweet and inspiring.
I linked it here:http://sandradodd.com/spousesIt's not so new now, but I forgot to announce it; sorry. Those attending the Good Vibrations Unschooling Conference in San Diego next month can hear Gail and Broc in person.

I was asked for what I had written on how "the law of attraction" can hinder unschooling. I've found two things and put them together here:http://sandradodd.com/lawofattractionIf others remember where other discussions are, or have written something that could be added to that page, please send me a note.

The idea of "kind of" unschooling has been being discussed at facebook. I don't like the impermanence of facebook. I know nothing is permanent; many large collections of unschooling writings are lost to us. But facebook discussions aren't even "permanent" for a week. So I saved things written by Sylvia Toyama and Schuyler Waynforth here, where there were already some great ideas stored:http://sandradodd.com/unschool/marginal.html
(the page has also been cleaned up otherwise, and links added at the bottom)

Friday, August 5, 2011

NEW:
Vickie Bergman let me share something she wrote, with her photos.
Unschooling: It's Like Riding a Bicyclehttp://sandradodd.com/bicycle
and it lends itself well to links to some other inspiring things.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

I knew these were there, but today is my first "you can slow down" day since about April. I'm home from eight weeks in Europe, have spoken at the CHN Expo in southern California, and Kirby's 25th birthday party has passed successfully.

So here are the links to talks you can listen to right there, or possibly download to your own devices, and they're free. I wish I hadn't spoken so quickly, but there it already is. :-)

Recordings

Both talks were recorded, and are available here for
downloading as podcasts (mp3 format), which should play on anything
(PCs, Macs, iPods, etc). Each talk is split over two files; please note
that these are quite large files.

Morning talk: Unschooling information and inspiration

Many ways to create an environment in which natural learning can
flourish

Monday, July 18, 2011

I came to pass the hat, the collection basket, the international-coins jar.

The search function quit working on my site, and delivered an irritating error message if people tried to use it, trying to blame them and their computer. What happened, I think, was that Google custom search changed over a year ago and I didn't notice. Without a working custom search, my error message and my search page were worthless.

The new options were to have advertisements, or to pay $100 for a clean search page. I paid. It occurred to me that some of you who have used and appreciated my site and its search functions might be willing to help me with that unexpected cost.

Another slighter expense is the chatroom. I took off the time I was in Europe, and intended to pick up the Monday and Friday chats in August, but looking at the calendar, one mid-week chat would be better for me, and I will start Wednesday chats this week. The chatroom costs by usage, and is $15 every few months. (It would be free if I didn't mind strangers wandering in, or having advertisements pop in on us.) UPDATE November 2011; it's $12+ a month.

If it would make my begging any more effective, my birthday is near. OH! Rather I should say it's nearly Learn Nothing Day!

Donations may be made by PayPal to Sandra@SandraDodd.com or by paper (check) to the address at http://sandradodd.com/house. I vow to use all money received for the purpose of providing access to an expanding flow of unschooling information.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Until recently, Europeans (and Canadians, NZ, Australia—anybody outside the U.S.) needed to give me a lot of money for international shipping, but now Lulu has production centers on other continents. GOOD! [April 2011 is over.]And they have a shipping sale until the end of April.

Please check this out.

I also intend to have books with me in some places, at £9 for Moving a Puddle, and £15 for The Big Book, but for anyone interested in buying one directly now, with $4.95 off the shipping costs, I've collected details and links here: